Vertical Labret - totally doable.

By Anonymous · Sept. 23, 2008

I had wanted a vertical labret for quite some time, but had held off for three reasons: (1) I'm a drama major, and facial piercings are frowned upon, (2) I couldn't find a reputable piercer in my college town, and (3) I had never had an actual piercing before, and was scared shitless. But on Monday I realized that my schedule would prevent me from acting for at least three months. On Tuesday I finally got a good recommendation for a local place to get pierced. On Wednesday and Thursday I read literally about 200 experiences here, and consistently read that as soon as the needle was out, the pain went away. So on Friday I got a vertical labret. A bit whirlwind, but there you go.

When I got to the shop, everyone looked up when the door beeped, and I felt a little out of place. I made my way to the desk and said I wanted to get a vertical labret. Turns out the guy behind the desk was the piercer, but it was halfway through the aftercare that I realized this. He asked me what gauge I wanted, and after he told me he had never encountered someone's vertical labret tearing out, we decided on 16g.

After going over the aftercare and picking out the jewelry (Toast initially pulled out a straight barbell, but I asked for a curved one, so he switched it out), Toast had me swish with Listerine for a little over a minute. After that he swabbed disinfectant on my lip, and began marking the entry and exit holes. He moved the bottom one over, then had me look at it. I asked him to move the bottom hole back just a little bit, which he did. I asked him to move the top hole forward, which he also did. Then both my friends, Toast, and I all agreed that it was straight.

I asked if I could lie down, since both times I got my ears gunned I got light-headed. He considered it (apparently I was the first person to ask him to lie down for this piercing) and then said he could do it. So I lied down and immediately grabbed my friend's hand. I asked Toast to please not countdown and he said that he never did that. I did some deep breathing to try and calm myself down (didn't work), and then Toast said "Deep breath in, and... out." I did.

I had read about 200 accounts of vertical labret piercings on here, and so had a few different expectations. Some people said it felt like a shot, others said they could feel the layers of tissue separating, others said it hurt like a bitch, others said it just felt uncomfortable. I felt all of the above. The initial entry of the needle felt like the pinch you get from a shot, and then going through felt very uncomfortable. Then he stopped, and I breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay," he said "I have to readjust the angle to make sure it's straight, so another deep breath..." Fuck. The second push hurt SO bad, my eyes watered liked crazy, and I could feel the layers of tissues separating before the needle. I have a very low pain tolerance, and a crippling fear of hypodermic needles, which probably contributed to my freaking out. I started hyperventilating/shaking.

But as soon as the needle was out, it stopped hurting. It was like magic. He pushed the receiving tube in after the needle, twisted the barbell onto the tube and pulled it through. He put the ball on the jewelry  I could feel all this, but it didn't hurt at all. My friends immediately reassured me, saying it looked really cool. I was shaking like crazy, and didn't sit up for about five minutes. Even after sitting up I was still really shaky, and sat there and chilled for five-ten minutes more. Toast took pictures for his portfolio and I paid, tipped, and left.

Aftercare has been pretty easy. Toast told me to do SSS at least once a day, more often if it's sore/crusty. Otherwise LITHA. I took LOTS of Ibuprofen the first four-five days to keep the swelling down. I asked about beer causing yeast infections, and he said that was a myth; the yeast in beer is different than the yeast that causes yeast infections, so hooray for that (I did get made fun of for drinking a can of pbr with a straw, but there you go). It's a week old, and is still tender if I hit it a little hard. I'm using Vaseline to combat the chapped lips (which can become a major problem with this piercing), and have just graduated to not using straws while drinking.

Overall, I'd say that this is a highly recommended piercing, particularly if you want an oral piercing with no risk of gum/enamel erosion. Toast is an incredible piercer, was able to calm me down for the majority of the time I was there, and had a very calm, professional demeanor to his work. I would highly recommend him to anyone in the Springs.

Comments (1)

Hi,
It's Toast. I love reading experiences! Always interesting to find out what's really happening on the other side of the needle. I never get such detailed feedback, in the studio.
Two notes: "receiving tube" was a threaded or pin taper - nothing like a guarantee that the internal jewelry will go in perfectly, every time (what a CRUTCH!) ;)
Also, after a debate in a tribe forum, it has come to my attention that, while I suspect it may be rare, saccharomyces (beer yeast) has been confirmed as a possible agent of infection. Didn't see the med record, don't want to believe it. For now, I relay that info, just in case. DAMN!!

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